Celebrities are such an inconvenience to our everyday lives. We wake up to social media, checking for views, likes, and comments, but many are checking the status on someone they barely know.

Many people, especially younger generations such as Gen Z, are still establishing their identities. Because of social media, kids are starting to look towards people with bigger platforms for guidance. This can be very dangerous as there are many celebrities and influencers that can easily spread misinformation to millions of people that will take what they say as fact.

People should be focusing more on their faith than someone they don’t even personally know. Sorry to say, but fans are allowing “celebrity worship syndrome” to take control over their lives.

Some of these celebrities believe that because they have more money, power, and influence that they are above everyone else in society. It doesn’t help that the media is always “in your face” so It’s unlikely for people to avoid these known stars.

In a study done by Harvard School affiliate McLean Hospital, social media has also been proven to negatively affect teenagers by distracting them, disrupting their sleep, and exposing them to bullying, rumor spreading, unrealistic views of other people’s lives, and peer pressure.

Social media overuse can contribute to social isolation. People who use it are more likely to socially compare themselves to others which can increase feelings of depression and anxiety in young minds.

Social media presents false narratives about others and facts that cannot be easily verified. It can spread misinformation to large numbers of people and be used as a tool of hate to spread racism, homophobia, classism, etc.

A lot of teens shape their life around someone with whom they never had a meaningful interaction with or any interaction with. When someone reaches celebrity status, it’s natural to admire them for their accomplishments but over idolizing can be unhealthy, setting you up for comparison and missed opportunities in the real world.

Take the Kardashians for example. People are so obsessed with them and they haven’t really done anything that makes them worthy of celebrity status. In fact, rather than helping others, they contribute to the problem of idolization.

There are so many celebrities that have influence and power, like the Kardashians, and don’t use their platform for realistic things. Rather than selling overpriced merchandise, they could be using their platform to ensure positive messages, give back to communities in need, and donate to charities.

More and more people are going towards these influencers as a way to get guidance and expression in their own personal lives. Why is Beyoncé queen, why is Drake the best rapper of this time, why is LeBron James the Goat of basketball? We keep giving celebrities these identities of being so superior over our everyday lives that we forget that we can be our own idols.

Prioritizing people we don’t even know could affect the way we see ourselves as humans. This generation has a lot of work to do to prevent future generations from falling under the same circumstances.

We should be looking to better ourselves rather than comparing ourselves to unrealistic standards. We should be idolizing our own lives and putting in the time and energy to ensure our own well beings.